Think Thursday: Why Familiar Feels True-When Thoughts Become Beliefs

What happens when a thought gets repeated so often that it stops feeling like a thought and starts feeling like a fact?In this Think Thursday episode, Molly explores the illusory truth effect, processing fluency, self-schemas, and self-verification to explain why familiar ideas can feel more believable simply because we’ve practiced thinking them over and over.In this episode:Why repetition can make information feel more trueThe difference between familiarity and evidenceHow self-schemas shape what we notice and rememberWhy we tend to collect evidence that supports existing beliefsHow repeated thoughts can quietly become identity statementsWhy changing your thinking isn’t about forced positive affirmationsHow to question old beliefs with more accuracy and curiosityA question to take with you:Is this something I know, or is this something I’ve practiced thinking?Sometimes behavior change begins not with immediately creating a new belief, but with realizing that an old one may never have been a fact in the first place.Research MentionedHasher, Goldstein & Toppino — early research on the illusory truth effectDechêne et al. — meta-analysis on repetition and perceived truthLisa Fazio and colleagues — repetition and prior knowledgeHazel Markus — self-schema researchWilliam Swann — self-verification theory ★ Support this podcast ★